VALE PETER DAWKINS

It is with immense sadness that the music world learned during the past week of the passing of Peter Dawkins, 68, resulting from complications arising from a fall in his home.

The New Zealand-born Dawkins was a drummer in various bands in the late 1960’s, however he made the well-worn journey to Australia in the early 1970’s and quickly discovered his musical forte as a producer and A & R man for EMI, CBS and Festival Records.

Dawkins didn’t relinquish his New Zealand roots, as he produced seminal albums for Dragon and Mi-Sex. Other important Australian artists to benefit from Dawkins’ production genius include Australian Crawl, Russell Morris, Matt Finish and the internationally-successful soft rockers Air Supply.

It is often remembered that Dawkins was quoted as saying “when I cry upon hearing the playback of one of my productions, the song is a hit”. The Australasian music world will mourn Dawkins and fondly remember his production and talent spotting skills, in addition to his significant contribution to the local music scene in the 1970’s and 1980’s.

VINYL RECORDS – NOT DEAD YET

Easter isn’t only a religious holiday for me; it’s an opportunity to revisit a pastime of listening to my favourite recordings being played on my favourite medium – vinyl.

It is somewhat ironic that I have discovered that today happens to be the annual Record Store Day throughout Australia and the globe. In short, this is a celebration of all things vinyl; new releases, rare and limited edition releases and the ambiance of an authentic record retail store.

Sydney is my hometown, and I am amazed to learn that there are DOZENS of retail stores in the Central Business District and inner-city suburbs that specialise in the sale of vinyl records. Further to this, sales of vinyl records increased by 77% within Australia during the past 12 months.

Nothing beats entering a record retail store. Who can’t resist the smell of vinyl; the inspection of the record label and inner-sleeve artwork; the quirky characters/ fellow customers and [best of all] the store owner. The store owner has so many stories to tell – which record continues to fly off the racks? Which celebrity has been frequenting the store?

Yes, we can read about similar matters almost immediately via Twitter from somebody on the other side of the globe, however “being there” is what truly counts…

WHEN CD PLAYERS RULED THE WORLD…

Not only are music tastes continually evolving, so it seems that the manner in which we listen to and play music is also making a change.

Take a quick look in the electronic section of your local department store. In the present age, most laptop computers aren’t manufactured with an in-built CD/ DVD player, albeit there are at least 2 USB ports [mp3 download?].

The next time that you wish to purchase a new car, don’t expect to be treated to an in-built CD player. This being said, there will be an outlet to plug in your mp3 player.

When your next monthly trash clean up occurs take a quick look at what your neighbours are throwing out. I guarantee that you will find plenty of pre-loved CDs amongst the various treasures on display.

It is inevitable that the CD and CD player will swiftly go the same way as the cassette tape and tape player: to extinction.

Music purists have forced manufacturers to revive the retailing of vinyl recordings and record players [has DJ music played a part in this retro reversal?], however the “in your face” sound quality of an mp3 file may be the defining event in making the 3 decade old compact disc a thing of the past...